BLM camp spots near Carlsbad Caverns | Wild Camping

April 13th, 2024 by spiritualbarbiturate76

Beautiful views, though road is rough in spots. Stayed 1 night in Ram Promaster. Road actually smooths out further uphill (west - i hiked up) but several very rough areas on the way up. convenient to Carlsbad Caverns if you have an early Timed Entry. Visited by some wild cattle too!

April 3rd, 2024 by nishadmulye

Steep grade but free BLM land. Sites are informal and are not level.

October 13th, 2023 by nursestacy73

Bureau of Land Management property about 7 miles from the National park entrance, accessible via a gravel/rock road. It was a rocky route with some deep washouts along the road and it gets a bit steep in places. We traversed it in a Ford E250 Econoline with after-market tires to make it have a higher clearance.
Amazing views from the top of the hill. It’s a level pull off from the gravel path. The highway is visible but the noise was not distracting.
No facilities so it’s pack in and pack out. There is a stack of rocks that we used as a fire ring. It was clear that others had used it as well for fires.
Our plan is to hang out for a couple days and then move on up the road.

June 2nd, 2023 by amraja

Lots of big spots available. after the first two spots, road gets rough so high clearance and possibly 4wd is necessary. roads will be very difficult in rain. minimal road noise and wind wasn't too bad in spot 3, I tent camped.

February 16th, 2023 by deargdoo

Right off 180 and straight up a pretty rough hill. it's rocky and rutted. it did make it up slow in a truck with a slide in camper, in 2wd. Not very flat. Use caution in bigger rigs. Can't hear the highway and it's windy. Firepits so bring wood. Decent 5G UC on TMobile.

November 27th, 2022 by mikeoboyle21

Parked at the 4th spot up furthest we could go with the van but a better vehicle can definitely make it further. Awesome spot quiet with a nice pit. Windy but worth it. Can barely hear any of the trucks passin on the road below.

November 7th, 2022 by R.T. Van Go

Not for the faint of heart. Washed desert road, not gravel or dirt. High clearance need, in my opinion, 1/2 miles in. Single rigs only to that point. All spots taken so made my own turnout, for parking only, not camping. Safe place to spend the night, or to camp, if you can find a spot. Not great cell reception where I parked.

February 24th, 2022 by codymarple0

Devils playground.
it was super windy and cold when we were there.

December 14th, 2021 by andrea.b.gee

Don’t do it unless you have AWD. Really deep dips once you’re less than half a mile from the main road.

December 2nd, 2021 by markvdp23

Amazing views. Nice and quiet. There is cell service. Very easy to find. Got a 36 foot 5th wheel rig up to the fourth or fifth site. Higher up you would need a truck or higher clearance vehicle because of wash outs. Neat looking down at the highway.

November 8th, 2021 by brenna.hyland

Great spot - a bit of noise from the road but not terrible. Cows came and hung out at night by our camper (nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard a moo right by where I sleep). If you are headed south, the dirt road starts just after mile marker 20

November 3rd, 2021 by thirtyeyes

Rough road but nice view. Gets very rough at one small spot. MSurprised to see a small 2WD sedan go up the road past the 3rd spot, if his car was wider he’d be in trouble. I didn’t try in the Subaru because the 3rd spot was open but I think I could have made it! I wouldn’t advise trying in the dark unless you have high clearance.

September 4th, 2021 by Lucas_Meets_World

as described. nice open spot. windy all day and night. great views and quite. would not dare to push further in our ford transit though as the road gets really rough...

July 14th, 2021 by Melissa

Made it up the hill in my Corolla after watching the bats at Carlsbad. You can hear some cars on the road, but nothing too bad. I was the only one there from what I could tell. It was a nice place to watch the sunrise.

May 7th, 2021 by davelauge

The first half mile of road has erosion issues so there are Little Rock ledges that you need to drive up and down. The rest of the road is strewn with cobble stones that you should largely avoid driving over. We towed a 22’ camper up the road about a half mile and had tremendous views. We drove the entirety of the road exploring, and estimated there to be 6 sites within the first half mile or so and then 6-8 more the further in you go. The first half mile is the worst, beyond that the road is easier to navigate and the sites near the end of the road have very grand views.

April 18th, 2021 by stephanopoly

High clearance needed to get to this spot. This was as far as we dared drive with our promaster. Other 4x4 rigs parked further up the road. Some road noise but it dies down at night.

December 10th, 2020 by thetincanpirate

Nice location to catch sunrise. Has a fire pit. Can hear the highway down bellow but didnt bother us. Road gets more rutted out past this point. LTE works Verizion l, .33mbs

November 22nd, 2020 by angelwelp

Good spot, I took the 3rd campground, after that the road gets significantly tougher. I have low clearance and 2wd and was fine.

February 6th, 2020 by audrey.larin.al

As said, 2-3 first spots are ok for normal clearance 2wd. A bit bumpy.

December 8th, 2019 by instagram.com/adetailedmap

I wouldn't take anything smaller than a standard pickup or bigger than a sprinter. We stayed between days at Carlsbad Caverns. Very windy, would have been tough to have a fire if we tried.

April 26th, 2019 by rubyontheroad

Road a bit rough but with care no problem for our van. Quiet and deserted. Little noise from the highway.

April 22nd, 2019 by kmorgan2023

No more than 6 minutes from Carlsbad entrance. I’m in a Honda Fit and was able to get to the first two spots without much trouble. Beyond that, I wouldn’t have made it. First two spots have significant highway noise but are just fine. Flat pull off with a fire ring. Someone else in a big box truck rig made it up the hill.

April 16th, 2019 by you_me_go_see

Road in is a bit rough with big, smooth rocks but we managed fine in our Sprinter. Sites are not that level. A few other campers were here with us. Felt safe, very windy.

February 6th, 2019 by johndelaney2008

Exactly as described; 2wd is OK with good clearence, windy and paneramic views.

December 11th, 2018 by Pale Yellow Van

Exactly as described! No toilets, water, or other hookups, but accessible from main road and very close to the entrance to Carlsbad Caverns. Terrain was pretty rough, would advise good tires and high-ish clearance.

January 29th, 2018 by Theworldbytrail.com

Good place. A little road noise though. Wide open views are great and sunsets are amazing.

January 10th, 2018 by nobaetz

Good for one night.

December 14th, 2017 by Fabian Pickel

Several pullouts on rough gravel road. Road leads to oil well. Some traffic noise from highway down below. May be windy. No shade. Good views. Free.
Very big rigs might have a hard time turning around until all the way to the end (oil well). I wouldn't do it with a trailer.

November 14th, 2016 by laderoutedesaventuriers.wordpress.com

Watch for big rocks, not an easy road for RV

March 2nd, 2016 by ina.kahlbau

Free Place